Packaging machine



Nov., 24, 1936. F. WEST PACKAGING MACHINE 2 Sheets sheet l l Filed May22, 1935 .ATTORNEY ZSLSS@ F. WEST PACKAGING MACHINE Nom Z4, H936.

Filed May 22, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR W ATTORNEY) ij, ffy

Patented Nov. 24, 1936 y 2,061,886

UNITED STATES PATENT oEFlcE PACKAGING MACHINE Fred West, Brooklyn, N.Y., assigner topS. Gumpert Co., Inc., Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation ofNew York Application May 22, 1935, Serial No. 22,700 3 Claims. (Cl.93-6) This invention relates to apparatus for packzontally at the top(Fig. 2) and the third ap 36 aging materials and particularly toapparatus at each end extending vertically upward from for closing andsealing the ends of a container of the lower edge. The box is conveyedin this concardboard or the like. dition into the machine, Vside guidemeans being The object of the invention is to provide packprovided tohold the box ends closed while the 5 aging apparatus simple in form andinexpensive last flaps are coated with an adhesive and folded in cost,and adapted to receive the package at down and pressed in place to sealthe package. one end and to automatically deliver it in com- The sideguide means comprise side bars 48 pletely sealed condition at the other.adjustably supported by brackets 4I from posts lo Further objects of theinvention, particularly 42 on cross piece I2. The box Bin the condition10 in the automatic application of the adhesive and above described isplaced on the trackway strip the simple guide means for subsequentlyfolding I8, between side bars 40 and with its aps 36 and retaining thesealing flaps in place during the in contact with said bars While theoutermost preliminary setting will appear from the following flaps 35extend outward above these bars. The l5 specification taken inconnection with the accombox after insertion is engaged by one of thefeed 15 panying drawings in which lugs 45 of the chain 2l and movedalong track- Fig. 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of the way I8, 20and passes under the top bar 46 adinvention with entrance and dischargeends brojustably carried at one end by cross piece 41 exken away toshorten the space occupied by the tending transversely between posts 42.The other 20 ligure; end of this top bar 46 is adjustably supported 20Figs. 2 and 3 are vertical sectional views taken from the cross pieces48, 49 spanning posts 58, 58 on the lines 2-2 and 3-3 of Fig. l; and 5I,5I on cross bars I4, I5.

Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view The travel of eachchain lug 45 carries its box ,of the apparatus shown in Fig. l; and intothe machine and brings the outwardly ex- 25 Fig. 5 is a transversevertical sectional view tending flaps 35 against the adhesive supplyingg5 taken on the line 5--5 of Fig. 4. v rolls 55 mounted on shaft 21 anddipping in ad- In the specic embodiment of the invention hesive liquidin tankT suspended underneath the shown in the drawings main framesupports F are rolls as shown. At the top of the rolls 55, the mountedon legs I8, II and connected by cross pressing rollers 51 are positionedAon transverse pieces I2, I3, I4, I5, and I6. The cross pieces I2, shaft58 mounted in brackets 59 on cross piece 30 I3, I4, and I5 are spacedabove frame members F I3, these rollers 51 being closely adjustable toby bushings I1 through which pass the fastenclear the peripheries ofrolls 55 sufficiently to ing bolts I8. A center strip 28 extendslongituavoid picking up any adhesive while at the same dinally along themiddle of these cross pieces I2, time acting to force the aps in uniformcon- 35 I3, I4, and I5 and overhangs at the entrance end tact with thesurfaces of the rolls 55. 35 of the machine (left end of Fig. 4) andserves The side guides 48 are terminated just short to support thetrackway and feed chain for the of rolls 55 and replaced by wire guides68 strung packages. across from side bars 48 to the side plates 6I Thepackage trackway is formed by parallel bolted by flanges 52 to the crosspiece I4 on the strips I9, 28 spaced apart and guiding the feed deliveryside of rolls 55. 40

chain 2| between them, the feed chain 2I sliding The side flaps 36 ofbox B are thus held closed on the center strip 28 and around the driveto and through the rolls 55 and until covered by sprocket 22 and returnidler 23 and an entrance the folding down of the outermost iaps 35.idler (not shown). The drive sprocket 22 is fas- Following the coatingof the under surfaces of tened to crossshaft 25 rotating in bearings 26on these aps 35 with the adhesive the aps are en- 45 frame members F anddriven from the main gaged by the closing bars 62, 63 adjustablysupdrive shaft 21 by chain 29 and sprockets 38, 3|. ported by rods 64from posts 58, 5I and are bent The main shaft 21 carries the pulley 32driven by as shown to contact with the tops of the flaps belt 33. 35 andturn and press them gradually down- In the machine shown the packageoperated on ward as the box B passes out of the rolls 55. 50 is a boxB,square in section, and having four fiaps Then at the point P on eachside, these bars 82, at each end. The box is lled and three of the 63close the flaps 35 against the underlying flaps four flaps at each endare folded down and the with the adhesive acting to cement thecontacting box is placed in the conveyor with the fourth open surfacesand the continued movement of the box flap 35 at each end protrudingoutward hori- B draws the closed aps along the continuation of the bars62, 63 for a considerable distance before the box is delivered to thebelting conveyor which seizes the box ends in a broad distributed gripacting to press all contacting parts of the aps into binding engagement.

A sub-frame f is supported by cross piece I6 and legs 66 and carries thebearings 61 for the vertical shafts 68 of the pulley idlers 69 aroundwhich belts 'l0 run on each side. The drive pulleys 'll for these beltsare on the vertical shafts 12 in bearings 13, 14 of cross pieces I6, 15of the main frame. These shafts 12 are driven from shaft 16 by bevelgear sets 11, the shaft 16 being chain driven as shown from shaft 25 andsupported in bearings 'I8 on legs |0,and the speed of the drive ispreferably sufficient to receive and convey the boxes B out of contactwith each other. The inner lengths of travel of the belts l0 areprovided with flat backing strips `81 adjustably and resilientlysupported by brackets 88 from the sub-frame f and acting to maintain thebelts I0 in ilat contact with the ends of the boxes while the adhesiveis setting. Angle bars 80 on posts 8| between belts 10 form a supportingtrack for the boxes as they are borne along by the belts, and theadjustable belt-tensioning idlers 82 mounted on the adjustablly pivoftedbracket arms 83 maintain the proper tautness of the belting 'l0 on eachside.

The boxes B ready for sealing are placed in the conveyor at the entranceend and picked up by the chain lugs and carried along to the adhesiveapplying rolls 55, where the under surfaces of the extending flaps 35are coated with n adhesive. After this the closing bars 62, 63 wipe theflaps 35 downward against the ends of the box, the inward bending ofthese closing bars being reached at approximately the point P, afterwhich the bars incline `downward to provide a further downward wipingmovement against the l closed flaps, after which the bars are paralleland horizontal to hold the ends closed and deliver the box in closedcondition to the nal belt conveyor and sealing device. This beltconveyor with its belting l!) on each side may be extended as desiredand is long enough to insure a preliminary setting of the adhesive and apermanent closing of the box.

All the operators have to do is to insert the boxes at the entrance endof the apparatus and receive them in finally closed condition at theopposite end. While the invention has been described in connection withapparatus adapted to close and seal both ends of the package, it isobvious that the apparatus may be modified or operated to close only oneend of the box, the other end being closed or left open as desired.

I claim:

1. In package sealing apparatus the combination with a conveyor forcarrying a package with a closed and open flap at each end, of a guideat the side of the conveyor for holding 'fthe closed flap closed, aroller carrying adhesive at the side of the conveyor beyond said guide,a closing bar beyond said roller for closing down the open flap, and arelatively small diameter guiding wire adjacent the roller stretched fora distance between the guide and closing bar, whereby said roller may belocated very close to the end of the package and apply adhesive over alarge area of the open flap.

2. In package sealing apparatus the combination with a conveyor forcarrying a package with closed and open iiaps at each end, of a guide ateach side of said conveyor for yholding closed some of the flaps at eachend of the package, a roller carrying adhesive located beyond eachguide, a closing bar beyond the roller at each side of the conveyor forclosing down an open ap, and a relatively small diameter wire stretchedfor a distance between the guide and closing bar adjacent each roller,whereby said rollers may be carried very close to the ends of theconveyor package and apply adhesive over a large surface of the openflap.

3. In package sealing apparatus the combination with a conveyor forcarrying a package with closed and open flaps at each end, of a guide ateach side of said conveyor for holding some of the flaps closed, aroller carrying adhesive beyond each guide, a short side plate beyondeach roller and a closing bar beyond each side plate, said closing barcurving near the outer edge of each side plate and extending along theside of the conveyor whereby the open flap at each side of said packageis guided between said side plate and closing bar and is closed to the.sealing position, and a relatively small diameter guiding wirestretched between the guide and side plate at each side of said conveyorwhereby each roller may be located close to the conveyor.

FRED WEST.

